


Nymphs and Their Ways

by Snacky



Category: Chronicles of Narnia - C. S. Lewis
Genre: Humor, Lost Library, Narnian history, Nymphs & Dryads, sex-ed in narnia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-18
Updated: 2015-07-18
Packaged: 2018-04-09 02:37:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4330587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snacky/pseuds/Snacky
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peter's been making a study of nymphs and their ways. Edmund gets a little education on the subject as well.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nymphs and Their Ways

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pocketbookangel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pocketbookangel/gifts).



> For pocketbookangel. This was a fun prompt, I hope you enjoy! 
> 
> Note regarding the Pevensies ages: In this story, Edmund is 13, and Peter is 16, and it takes place within the first year of their reign.
> 
> *************

It had been a long day at Cair Paravel. Sword training in the early morning, then a full morning in court, listening to the decades-long history of a land dispute between the Marshwiggles and the Muskrats of the Northern Marshes. The Marshwiggles had been building a canal, and the Muskrats had been blocking it up. For at least twenty years. Or maybe fifty. Or one hundred and fifty. Edmund had lost track of it, after an entire morning of hearing every last detail of the dispute, from the family histories of the offending Marshwiggles, to the names they were considering for the still unbuilt canal, to the types of mud the Muskrats were using, right down to the color, thickness, and consistency.

Neither side had been particularly interested in negotiations, but had agreed to come before the Kings and Queens at Cair Paravel to try to solve their problems.

Edmund rather wished they hadn't. In fact, he wished the Wiggles and the Muskrats had stayed in their Marshes and argued about their mud and their canal and the tiny details of it without involving innocent bystanders, because it seemed to him that they liked arguing far more than they liked building. Or resolving things.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the type of thing a King could say to his subject (or Edmund didn't _think_ it was, but he had only been King for six months, so he couldn't be entirely sure). Also unfortunate was that Edmund was the only one present in court when the problem was presented. Lucy was off with Tumnus, visiting the Beavers. Susan had been invited to the Red Dwarf settlement at Pownder Hill, to celebrate the opening of the new mines there.

Peter, of course, was supposed to be in court with Edmund, but right before the Wiggles and the Muskrats had started to speak, a group of Dryads had appeared, their hair wild and tangled, and wisps of cloth that Edmund thought were supposed to be dresses wrapped around their shapely bodies. 

These three had hair the color of brilliant autumn leaves, streaks of warm gold and fiery red running through their wild curls, and their skin almost looked like bark, but much softer and suppler. Edmund wasn't entirely sure, but it seemed like they had tiny vines twining around their ankles. He would very much like to take a closer look, to be sure, but it wasn't to be. The Dryads had implored the High King for help, and without even hearing what the problem was, Peter had leapt to his feet. "I'll handle this, Ed," he called over his shoulder. "You can take care of the rest, I'm sure!"

It was rather rude, Edmund thought. Perhaps _he_ could have been of assistance to the Dryads. Perhaps Peter would have liked to learn about the finer details of mud.

So Edmund was rather grumpy after luncheon, when he adjoined to the Reading Room at Cair Paravel. Peter still hadn't returned, and with the girls away, that meant Edmund would have to have his afternoon lessons alone.

Normally, this wouldn't matter to him, because he really did quite like learning all about Narnia, the history, the culture, the lore of its people. They all did, and it was helpful to know more about the land they'd found themselves ruling. It was lucky, really, that Cair Paravel had been sealed by such powerful magic for those hundred years of the Witch's reign. The library with all the books and scrolls had been preserved and there were histories of Narnia and Archenland going back to the beginning of time, along with Narnia literature and plays and theoretical studies, and philosophy, and maps, and really, the library was a treasure, as Tumnus had exclaimed the moment he'd stepped foot through the doors.

Adimus the Faun was the librarian at Cair Paravel, and he was very protective of all the books, hesitant to even let them leave the library for a moment. Of course, he welcomed people to come and read and study _in the library;_ they just couldn't remove the ancient texts, and the crumbling parchment scrolls.

For the Kings and Queens, though, Adimus made an exception. There were books on each of the four desks in the Royal Reading Room, where the Kings and Queens did their lessons. It wasn't just Narnian history and culture, of course. There was philosophy and math and spelling — Lucy had nearly rebelled at that, but eventually gave in to Susan's gentle advice that queens must be able to spell properly (privately, Edmund didn't think that would ever happen with Lucy, but at least she was trying). And much on the geography of this world, which was much bigger than one would suppose for the size of the wardrobe.

Elswilde the Centaur was their Majesties' tutor, and Edmund was surprised to find him not in the Reading Room when he arrived. Something must have delayed him — probably gathering more books and arguing with Adimus about removing them from the library — and Edmund found himself wandering around the room. 

Each of the Kings and Queens had their own texts they were studying, and Edmund was curious about what the others were reading. He sat at Peter's desk, and reached for the book on top of the pile. _Nymphs and Their Ways_. 

Perhaps this might explain why Peter had been so willing to help the dryads, Edmund thought as he opened the book. He must know something about them that Edmund didn't.

_The Nymphs of this world — dryads and hamadryads, naiads and nereides and oceanids, river-gods and wood-gods — were called into being when Aslan created the world, back at the Dawn of Time. No creature alive today remembers the creation, but the Beasts hold the history of this world as tales they tell to each generation. This volume will seek to explore the history of Nymphs, since their creation, their society, and their customs, as seen by Beasts and the other Peoples of Narnia._

_Aside from the common nymphs found in Narnia, there are other, rarer types. The maenads, for example, are nymphs, but they are usually only found in Narnia when accompanying Bacchus. The winds can take form as nymphs (known as the Aurae) as well, but their appearances are as fleeting as the breezes they embody. The stars themselves are said to be nymphs, but aside from a few brief visits from the sisters known as the Pleiades, sightings are extremely rare, and their culture and lore almost completely unknown, aside from legends._

Rather a dry opening, thought Edmund. But perhaps it got better. He flipped a few pages.

_Nymphs are always female, although dryads and naiads do have their male counterpart — the river-gods, and the wood-gods. Still, the females outnumber the males 10 to 1, and they are the ones most Narnians are familiar with. (See fig. 10, 11, 13, and 15 for for a selection of the types of nymphs found in Narnia.)_

  
  
  
  
  


Nice artwork, Edmund thought to himself. He'd never seen a dryad emerging from her tree like that before.

_**Differences between Dryads and Hamadryads, and Reproduction:** While Dryads are the spirits of the woods and all the trees, each Hamadryad is born bonded to a **certain** tree (e.g., walnut, oak, holly, willow). Hamadryads reproduce as new trees are planted or pollinated, of course. In each new tree, a hamadryad resides, and these new saplings are cared for by the older hamadryads. Young hamadryads can leave their trees after a few years, but such sightings are very rare. Most hamadryads are not seen until their trees are fully grown, and they can leave them safely._

Now _this_ was getting more interesting… Edmund flipped through a few more pages.

_Dryads and Naiads reproduce differently. They can couple with other beings, including humans. The children of the first King and Queen of Narnia, Frank and Helen, were said to have married nymphs, and wood- and river-gods. Children of such unions tend to have characteristics of both parents: generally, a human lifespan, and their other parent's affinity and magic for nature. Nymphs can also reproduce with other Narnia beings — indeed, dryads and satyrs are well-known sexual partners, and can often be witnessed coupling at the Narnian Spring Festival. Their offspring, however, are different from the union of humans and dryads. With human/nymph unions, the child is a combination of both parents, with the looks and traits of both. But when a child is born to a union of dryad and satyr, if the child is a girl, she is a dryad; if a boy, a satyr._

Edmund had to pause a moment after reading that, for his cheeks felt rather hot, and his head muddled. But after a few breaths, he went right back to the book.

_Indeed, dryads and naiads both have a very sensuous, sexual side. They spend their days frolicking in waters or groves, enjoying the sun, and seeking out partners to enjoy these delights with them. They —_

At that moment, the book was torn from his hand and slammed shut. Edmund blinked and looked up to see Peter, cheeks as red as Edmund's felt, and his clothing in a very mussed state.

"Ed! That's _my_ book. And I don't think you're quite old enough for all that… knowledge!" Peter was doing his best to use his "High King" voice, but there was a crack in it that was easy to hear, and maybe a bit of a smug tone too? He certainly had a smug enough smile on his face.

"Fine, fine." Edmund stood from Peter's desk. "I'll leave your books alone. But I just have to say one thing, Pete."

The smile faded from Peter's face, and was replaced by a nervous twitch of his lips. "What's that?"

"I'm going to the next Spring Festival."


End file.
